A Younger Brother's Sorrow
by Chatty Blue Kirby
Summary: Months have passed since the younger brother came home. All of a sudden, he finds himself in danger again, with no recollection of what happened before. Things just don't add up, however, as the brother finds himself facing the people of his past. Will he find out what exactly's happening, or will he fall on his journey of self-discovery?
1. Denial of Fate

Me: Whoops, forgot my author's note! 'Kay! I'm still inexplicably into this game, like, a lot. I'm just gonna warn you now, I'm making/planning a lot of fanfics for this right now. Probably kinda like a series or...something. I DON'T HAVE A PROBLEM, OKAY?

Oh yeah, the brothers don't have any official names, but a lot of people assume older brother is Nyaa/Naya/Naia and little brother is Naiee/Naii. I still don't have an idea of which one I'm using. Wikipedia spells them as Nyaa and Naiee, but an official soundtrack I found spells older bro's as Naia... Well, there I go rambling again. My apologies. Carry on.

* * *

Naiee groaned, slowly waking up to find himself lying face-down on the ground. His head pounded, feeling like it was about to explode. He shuddered as he tried to recollect his mind. His whole body ached in one way or another. He didn't know where he was either. What... had happened?

The blond lifted his head groggily, holding it in one hand, supporting his body with the other. Suddenly, a strong arm extended for him.

"Naiee, are you okay?" The boy froze at the voice. It was so familiar, a voice Naiee hadn't heard in months. Slowly, his face turned up is disbelief, not sure what to expect. His eyes met with almond eyes, those of his deceased brother's. "You fell asleep, Naiee. For like, a while now. Come on, we need to get going." He turned away with the map, trying to figure out where they were.

"N... Naia?" Naiee rubbed his eyes, then took a good look at the teenager in front of him.

"Naiee, what's wrong?" The older brother turned and helped him to his feet. Naia was as healthy as ever, no wound on his stomach or any pale flesh from venom. He was still tall and strong, his clothes not very tattered, and strangely clean.

He was HERE.

He was ALIVE.

Naiee shook his head slowly in shock. "Naia..." he whispered again.

After a moment's hesitation, Naii threw his arms around his Naia and shook into his chest. "N-Naiee?!" Naia yelped in surprise.

"How're you here?!" Naii shouted in a mixture of joy and distress. "You're... You're dead!" The orange-clad brother stopped his shaking and took in the reality.

This couldn't be real. Naia WAS dead. Naiee never felt a pulse or a soft exhale of breath the last time he saw Naia. The last time he saw him, Naia was bleeding helplessly with shaky breaths, a true picture of horror.

But even if it were a dream, Naiee relished in his brother's warmth. He was there, firm arms around the boy. Naiee had almost started to forget his voice, and the scent that only Naia had on his clothes. It was a scent that Naiee had known everyday for 11, nearly 12 years, but had already started to forget.

"Naia..." Naiee muttered. "I don't want you dead..."

"Dead? I'm not dead."

"But...you're..."

"I'm right here, silly," Naia laughed as he and Naiee pulled away.

"No, no..." The blond's eyes were shut tight, trying not to cry. He hated to, and there was no reason to. "Y-You died..."

"Naiee, look at me." Naia's hand still rested on Naii's shoulder, shaking it a little and getting his eyes to open. His other hand pointed to his smiling face. "I'm right here. Of course I'm not dead."

"But..." Naiee sniffed and brushed a hair out of his face with his gloved hand. "But I made it home after you... And then we got a gravestone for you and... But... How?"

Naia's face turned into one of confusion. "Home? Naiee, we haven't even gotten to the Water yet."

The poor younger brother was confused. He was very sure the journey ended. Naia was supposed to be dead, yet here he was, saying they were still on their quest for the Water of Life. To make everything worse, Naiee couldn't remember what happened before waking up.

"What's going on?" he managed to ask, wiping away the last of his tears. "Where are we, Naia?"

Naia pulled out his map. "We're in the mountains." His arms embraced himself, and shivered. "How are you not cold, Naiee?"

Suddenly, Naiee felt a very cold chill. He looked around. He hadn't paid attention to the scenary before, but he was pretty sure they weren't in the cold mountains before... Wait... Cold mountains. That means...

"W-Where's Araca?" His voice was filled with fear and anger.

"Araca? Who's Araca?"

"You...don't remember?"

"No. Who's Araca? I don't recall ever meeting someone by that name."

"Th-The spider lady! Y'know, 'oh-so beautiful'? She killed you," Naiee bluntly said, unsure why he had to say that.

"But I'm not dead," Naia restated just as blunt. "I'm not dead." He gestured to himself and shrugged. "I'm not dead."

"Naia?" Little brother took a step back, a little unsure.

"Don't worry, Naiee. I'm not dead."

"I'm...just confused..." Naii dropped to his knees.

"Hey, you okay?" Naia took one of Naiee's hands in his own. Naia's other hand lifted the young child's head up, then rested on top of his other hand, clasping it in warmth. Naiee enjoyed the warmth. "Come on, we still a long way to go. He pulled his little brother up, still holding his hand. Naii didn't bother to pull his hand away. Strangely, he enjoyed it.

"There's no reason to look so sad, Naiee. I'm right here, with you. Even when time catches up to me and takes me away, I'm still here. I promise you I'm not dead, as cruel as fate can be."

"..." Naiee stayed quiet for a few seconds. "Fate...is cruel..."

"Sometimes fate does torture us, and there's no way to stop it. But even so, we can't alter time, Naiee."

"It... It felt so real."

"I'm not dead. You're not dead. It was just a dream, Naiee."

"But... But I never said I was dead."

"Of course you're not dead. And I'm not dead either. I just said it."

"..." Naiee embraced his brother from the side. "I'm glad we're not dead, Naia..."

"I'm glad too. Hey, I think we should go through this cave," Naia said as he pointed to a familiar looking cave...

It was Araca's cave. The younger brother froze in place.

"N-No! Not here! Not here!" Naiee struggled against his brother's iron grip.

"Why not?"

"There's a monster in there! A demon!"

"Monster? Don't be ridiculous. There's no monster in here. The map says this might be a shortcut..."

"Naia, no!"

Naia pulled Naiee into the cave, and suddenly they were weightless. Suddenly it wasn't a cave, but a dark hole they fell through, seemingly endless.

"NAIAAAAA!"


	2. A Blind Rage

Me: Hoo hoo! Merry Christmas Eve! So hey, here's another chapter of this story. Um... What did I have to say here?... I guess the only thing I should mention is that I dubbed the Spider Lady as Araca. It's a cheesy thing I'm doing, but there's a specific theme going on in the story. Can YOOUU figure out what it is?

* * *

"AHH! NAIA!" Naiee couldn't feel Naia's hand in his own anymore. He free-fell through the darkness, before suddenly rolling to the ground, strangely unscathed. He got up. "Naia? Naia, where are you?!"

"Right here, Naiee." The brunette suddenly came into view, right in front of Naii, but with his back to him. Naia was kneeling on the ground.

"Are you okay, Naia?" Naiee extended a hand to his brother's shoulder. He peered over it and saw Naia holding his stomach, groaning.

"Gah...I'm really hungry... I can't wait to get home and eat something. Naiee, you're hungry too, aren't you?"

"Huh?" Naiee's hand unconsciously felt his stomach. He felt like he hadn't. In fact, he suddenly felt a sharp pang of hunger. "Ah... Yeah, I guess I am."

"Naiee, you should eat. You can't go around not eating. It won't solve anything. Yet you're still not eating..." Naia got up, a big stick in hand. "Keep going."

"D-Do we have food Naia?" Naiee didn't want to slow themselves down, but the sudden hunger got to him.

"We will keep going," was Naia's only answer. Silence filled the area, and Naia's expression changed from concerned for Naiee to stoic seriousness.

The cave was still dark with a faint light leading the two brothers through. The sticky webs and some small tunnels leading to mummified people and eggs still stayed. They glowed faintly, bothering Naiee with unease.

"Why?" A whisper came from the walls. It sounded somber, kind of like Naiee's father crying.

"Naia, did you hear that?" Naiee walked closer to the brunette in fear. Naia didn't answer.

"Why?"

"Why didn't you stop him from entering the cave?" Another whisper emerged. It sounded angrier.

"I... I trusted Naia's word," Naiee answered. He looked down on the floor, not wanting to talk about how he failed. His hand crept into Naia's, feeling uneasy.

"You're so angry."

"Angry at your mistake?"

"But the past can't be changed." The faint glow of Araca's eggs faded.

"Ah... It's darker."

"You're blind."

"You're so blind."

"Everyone blames you."

"Who can blame them?"

A chuckle came from the other voice. "It WAS his fault."

"Shut up," the blond growled.

"Naiee, what happened? Where's your brother?" The new voice sounded like one of the village kids, one who took a liking to Naia.

"He died," Naiee unconsciously muttered.

"What?! You let him die?!"

"Shut up!" Naiee yelled at nothing. Naia's hand suddenly disappeared.

"Naia?" Naiee grew anxious as he felt around frantically for Naia's hand.

"Stay here for a moment." He sprinted ahead before Naiee could react.

"Naia?" Naiee looked around. All of a sudden, he heard screams and grunts ahead of him, prompting him to dash into the cave after his brother. "Naia!"

There stood Naia, holding a stick up, splattered with some blood. "It's all YOUR fault!" he yelled at nobody. Naiee recoiled in horror. Around him were two bodies.

One was on its side, with a bloody wound on his abdomen. It was their father. How he was there was beyond the little brother. The stoic man's eyes glazed over. He coughed a few times, before he suddenly slumped on the ground and melted away in the shadows.

"H-How..." Naiee barely uttered. His eyes widened at the sight. Suddenly, another pang of hunger struck him as he groaned and knelt to the ground. 'M-Must be the hunger... Don't pay attention to that...' he thought to himself.

The other was lying on her stomach, a giant spider abdomen where her legs would be. And where her legs on THAT would be, there was blood spilling out on the ground. She was still alive, looking at Naia with pleading eyes on her beat face.

"IT'S YOUR FAULT!" Naia raised his stick in anger. Naiee shielded his eyes in fright, and heard only a sickening blow. When he unshielded his eyes, Araca's head was then on the ground, face concealed. Blood spread out on the ground slowly, and at first Naiee couldn't look away.

Naia spun around, eyes red. He faced his brother, angry distress painted in his eyes. There were scratches on his arms.

"Naia!" Naiee cried. "What did you do?!"

"Why weren't you faster?" he asked, trembling. "You took so long, Naiee... WHY DID YOU TAKE SO LONG?! I WAITED FOR YOU!" He raised his stick and slammed it over Naiee's head.

"Augh!" The brother fell back, feeling another blow on his shoulder.

"It's all your fault! WHY?! Why are you such a GUTLESS COWARD?!"

"NAIA!" Naiee shielded himself in any way he could, though his brother's words stung more than the hard blows.

It was true, though. He hated himself for not being fast or strong enough to save Naia and their mother. He was weak, pathetic, and he resented himself for everything he did wrong. He closed his eyes, letting the brother he loved more than anything beat him senseless.

Suddenly, it stopped. Naiee slowly opened his eyes, to see Naia standing there with his hand over his face.

"N-Naia?"

"Naiee?... What happened?" He removed the hand on his face. His eyes widened at the bloody stick in his hand and threw it behind him. "Naiee, what did I do?"

"You... You didn't do anything," the blond brother lied.

"No, no, what did I do?" The stoic young man spotted Naiee's bruises. "Did I... just attack you?"

"I'm fine, Naia," the kid replied, rubbing his arm. "What happened to you?"

Naia sighed and rubbed his brother's bruises. "I'm so sorry, Naiee... I'm not sure what came over me."

"It's okay, Naia. I'm okay. Can we keep going now?"

"Yeah, we, uh, should." They continued walking deeper in the cave. "Naiee, are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Naia, what happened to you back there?"

"It just... It just felt like something angry kinda...overcame me." Every bit of light faded away the deeper they traveled, until there was suddenly no ground beneath them.

"N-Naia?! NAIA?!" THUD.

...

...

...

...

...

"My son... My son..." The cries of his disheveled father turned up.

"Papa." Was that Naiee saying that?

"Please forgive your selfish Father Naia. Please forgive me! MY SON!"

"Will you stop already?!" Naiee heard his voice scream. "Papa, you have to stop it! Stop the drinking, please!"

"Naia..." his father wept in reply. "Naia, my boy, is that you?"

"Papa, it's me!" Naiee heard. It sounded like him, but he wasn't saying it. Naiee opened his eyes. Suddenly he was in front of two graves. "It's ME! I'm NAIEE! Can't you see?!

"Naiee?" The gruff, but slurred voice of his father came up behind him.

"Why can't you just see that I'M here, Papa?! Why can't you just accept the fact that Naia's dead?! You really hate me that much to stop caring about me?!" Naiee's eyes widened as he saw himself shouting at Father. The bearded man's eyes were wide-eyed, as if in shock, at an image of the blond all tired and puffy-eyed. The effigy clutched his stomach, tears running down his face. "It's not what Mama would want! I hate seeing you like this, Papa, please stop!"

The actual Naiee hadn't seen the green, translucent bottle in his father's hand before. The vision of himself wrestled for the bottle and threw it away. His father stared at him in disbelief, regaining some sense.

"IT'S YOUR FAULT HE'S DEAD! I'D RATHER DIE THAN WATCH YOU SO DRUNK ALL THE TIME!" His fists clenched, angry, and ran off down the path, towards who-knows-where.

"Naiee, wait!" Father reached out for his only son. Then, he stopped. "Naiee... Naiee, PLEASE!" He got up and raced after his son, still feeling some aftereffects from his slightly drunk state. Nevertheless, he tried to catch up. He fell over, and watched helplessly before passing out, apparently.

Naiee looked down at the ground. Had he ever said that? It couldn't be... Naiee shook his head, a sharp pang suddenly ringing.

"I can't believe you," a voice came. "How could you say that?"

"I...when..." Naiee mumbled.

"A...AUGH!" His eyes shot open, and suddenly he was in a webbed cave. He stepped back in horror as he witnessed, once again, the moment Araca's leg pierced right through Naia's abdomen. The spider queen's face was distorted in pain and sheer anger. Naiee saw himself, eyes wide, push against Araca's leg and kick her. Then, he came to aid his brother.

"NO!" Naiee screamed in fear, helping Naia by supporting him.

"N-Not... Not again..." The real Naiee clutched his hair at the horrible event unfolding once again in front of him.

Araca moaned in agony, lying on her back, and silently passed on with her eyes slightly open.

Everything faded to black. Slowly, another vision of Naiee came into view, walking in one direction. This mirror image of himself...looked terrible. He was dirty, and he was thinner. The expression on his face was emotionless, yet distressed with painful self-hate.

"What happened?..." The real Naiee asked himself. He sluggishly approached. "Why am I seeing all of this again?!"

"I hate you," the image responded blankly. "It's your fault Naia's dead."

"..." Naiee's face softened to an ashamed one. He hated being reminded of the truth.

"You're not worth it. You don't have the right to keep yourself happy, No wonder you ran off."

"Ran off?"

"Worthless, stupid little piece of trash," the image muttered. "Insolent and unwanted."

"..." Naiee grimaced at the remarks. His fists unknowingly clenched.

"An absolutely pathetic waste of space like yourself shouldn't be given the privilege to live! Not after all the stupid mistakes YOU'VE MADE!"

Naiee dared to look up, to find his mirror image right up to his face, breathing hard. The image grabbed Naii by the chin.

"How dare you continue living? After allowing your own BROTHER AND MOTHER PERISH?! YOU PATHETIC WASTE!"

All the anger in Naiee piled up in his fist as he punched his image across the face. All it resulted in was the image recoiling, holding his face, and facing the real Naiee with a furious snarl.

"NOTHING! YOU'RE NOTHING! YOU'RE NOTHING BUT TROUBLE AND A BURDEN! I HATE YOU!" The familiar words echoed. The image of Naiee pushed the real one strongly through the darkness, into another fall through it.


	3. Bargain of a Lifetime

Me: Why must I be so fixated on this game? I know, I know. I have more pressing Fanfics to accomplish. Eventually, I say, eventually I'll get to those too!

Y'know, compared to other fics in the archives, mine seem to be the most out-of-world/place/character. They're do AU-ish, especially this one and the one I'm planning on doing.

* * *

Naiee awoke in the forest near his home, where his father and Naia would retrieve firewood. Tall pines stretched to the sky, reaching the stars above. It was dark, nighttime. "Naia?" he called, unsure whether it was a good idea to call the teen who nearly killed him. "Naia, are you there?"

"Naiee?" He suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder, causing him to jump in surprise. He spun around to find a visibly worried Naia. "Oh... Thank goodness you're alright."

"Naia, what the hell is going on?!" Naiee boldly erupted.

"W-What?" Naia paused, a look of disapproval dawning on his face. "Naiee, you shouldn't use language like that."

"Don't dodge the question!" Naiee demanded. "I know for a fact that the journey ended months ago. I know for a fact how it ended! Now you're just suddenly here without any explanation! And it's not a dream..." His voice wavered into a mumble. "Naia, why? How? You're not real, are you?"

"Naiee, I promise, it's me," Naia sighed as he sat his brother down.

"How do I know it's really you?"

"Well..." The brunette scratched the back of his head like he always did when he felt awkward or nervous. "I know you know how to sew. Mom taught you before she died. You fixed part of my scarf too. Aaand I remember the time you got angry because I got to go on firewood trips with Dad."

"So? If I were some...some figment of my imagination, I'd know that."

"And I know you tried on some of my clothes one time."

A hot feeling rose on Naiee's face. Suddenly, the ground was a lot more interesting. He hadn't known Naia knew that... "...lt really is you..." He faced his brother in all seriousness. "Naia, tell me what's going on."

"Alright... But this is gonna take a lot of explaining..."

Suddenly, a twig snapped behind them. Instinctively, Naia rose and held up his arm in front of Naiee as a way to stop his movement.

"W-What was-"

"RAAAAH!" A giant figure pounced onto the two, eight legs stabbing into the ground and knocking both brother onto the ground! In the dim moonlight, a vicious, furious face loomed over both of them. "I FOOOUND YOU!" she sang.

"Araca!" Naia sneered. One of her legs aimed at Naiee, only for Naia to push him well out of the way. "Naiee, RUN!"

"Naia?!" The disgruntled blond looked up from the ground. In a split second, the spider lady's head bolted up, her piercing eyes catching him.

"NAIEE, RUN!" The second shout snapped him out of it. Araca made another pounce on him, only to miss!

"AHH!" He fell back and crawled backwards as fast as he could, before getting up and sprinting away as hard he could. Weaving in-between branches and leaping over logs and rocks, he was sure Araca was a little behind. He looked back to make sure, but found the deranged spider-lady following in hot pursuit. Not watching where he was headed, Naiee tripped, tumbled down a cliff, and blacked out.

"I've got you now..." a sweet voice rang as his vision blurred into blackness.

...

...

...

... "Urgh... Naia..."

* * *

A dirty, blond kid wandered aimlessly in the woods, in the dead of night. Both of his arms crossed over his distended stomach, only his soft breath and the crackle of the ground filled the silence. How could he have been so stupid? Exhausted, he leaned over a towering pine, taking a few deep breaths.

"Where are you?!" A bright light illuminated some of the area around him, startling the young boy. He turned around, wide-eyed, to find a figure standing a distance behind him. "Naiee?" Fixated on the figure, he took a few steps back. "Naiee?!"

He dashed off in the opposite direction. Dodging low branches and sprinting blindly in the dark, even in a weak state, he suddenly found himself at a cliff. Peering over the unstable ground, he could see rapids below. The light came back, and he about-faced quickly. A cautious step backwards..

"NAIEE!"

* * *

Naiee's head darted straight up in a startled shock. His head pounded as he felt his stiff neck crick. He was suspended in air, in a cocoon of web in a circular dome.

It was Araca's dwelling. On the other side of the area was another cocoon, holding a struggling Naia.

"Naia!" Naiee trembled in fright. He struggled against his bonds, but was stuck so well he couldn't even move his hands. His entire body, save for his face, was wrapped in silky, but strong strings. "Araca, let me go!"

The deceitful woman chuckled as she entered the room. She climbed up the wall and met eye-level with Naiee, her giant arachnid legs keeping her in place. "And why would I do that, Naiee dear?"

"We killed you once, we'll do it again!" He looked over Araca's shoulder. "Naia! Help!"

The older brother didn't react beyond even more struggling.

"Naia!"

"Kehe... 'Kill me' again you say?" Naiee opened his mouth again. "Oh, don't bother. Your precious Naia can't help you, foolish child," Araca sneered. Her surprisingly soft brushed against the boy's cheek. "Oh, still not enough meat on your bones for me, I see. Tch. Well, beggars can't be choosers, I suppose. I'd rather have a real meal than another sickly gnome." She scampered to the other side of the room, inspecting Naia as if he were livestock. "How nice to see you again, handsome. Especially here of all places. How did you of all people get here, I wonder... No matter. I'm enjoying this either way..."

Naia barely looked up, his face full of fury. "You son of a-"

"No no," Araca interrupted. "No need for language. It's simply too rude." Her hand brushed against his chin. "It flatters me that you'd take time to come all the way up there to visit me. If only I could strangle you... Then again... We ARE dead."

The younger brother stopped his struggling, looking down at the statement. 'I knew it...' Naiee thought to himself, saddened by the fact it really was all too good to be true.

"I might as well nip this in the bud," Araca mused. "Best to keep you here... Maybe feast on your soul since I didn't get the chance to in the living world..."

"No!" Naiee shouted, struggling in his cocoon prison once again. "Stop!"

"Yes, he'll do just fine." She licked her lips ravenously. "Shame though. He's such a gentleman. I bet he had a lot to live for."

"He... He does..." Naiee muttered in agreement.

Somehow, Araca's ears caught his mutter. "Now, what do you mean?"

"He has his whole life ahead of him. He's smart, he's strong, he's so well-liked. He's... He's everything I'm not... And he saved me and gave it all up..."*

"Well well, that's a shame, isn't it?" Araca mused. "Why wouldn't he get to live that sort of life anymore?"

"Because you killed him," Naiee retorted with scorn. "And I wasn't fast enough to save him. If I could change the past, I'd make sure you'd die without stabbing him!"

The spider lady giggled. "Child, fate doesn't work like that."

"What do you mean?"

"Fate is designed so that a person dies at their time."

"But it WASN'T Naia's time to die!" He kicked and flailed in his suspended bonds. "You killed him before it was his time!"

"True, maybe so. But even if your wish to turn back time WERE to work, one life would have to be taken in his place. Otherwise, he'd be stuck in an eternal loop of death, from the moment before he died to the end of his suffering. It's simply how fate works. You could wish for a second chance to save Naia, but you'd have to watch until you can accept his fate. I'd enjoy that if it weren't for the fact you two would be pulling off my legs every time."**

"Then... Then I'd take his place."

Araca looked genuinely surprised, then laughed it off. "Hah! As if you were bold enough! You had to be encouraged by your dead li'l mother to swim, because it's oh so hard enough for you to do so."

Her remark caught Naiee off guard. "How did you-"

"Haven't you figured it out yet, golden child?"

"Figured out...?"

From the corner of his eye, he saw Naia stir slightly.

"Hm. Apparently not."

"Tell me."

"It's not my job to tell you what sort of situation you got yourself into, fool. Now, hush up, pathetic child." She bore a wicked grin and placed her two hands and two extra hand-like legs on Naia. "Hm...yes. A pity he is the one dead. I've seen into your past, golden child. Sad. Pitifully sad." Her sharp hands reared back.

"... WAIT!" Araca stopped. "I...I made up my mind. Why don't you kill me right now instead?!" he demanded in all seriousness. "If I hadn't been such a wimp, Naia could've lived! I have no idea what's going on now, or how I'm here with you and Naia. You should be dead! NAIA should be dead! But it doesn't matter to me anymore!" He settled back in his coccoon. "I'd rather die right now instead of deal with life. I've seen what I've said and done..." He hung his head. "But if I really had said that... It'd be best for everyone that I just disappear..."

A twisted grin spread on the spider queen's face as she slowly crawled towards Naiee. "Kill me, Araca! If I can change fate, I want Naia to live NOW! Take me away from this! Let him live and let me take his place!"

He was still as Araca approached, snarling a sadistic smile. Naia was waking up then. Two of Araca's front legs stabbed the wall next to the little brother, frightening him into shutting his eyes and looking down. One leg that Araca used as an arm lifted his chin, letting his eyes meet hers. Her other spider arm placed itself above his chest, slowly drilling into it as Naiee burst into an inhumane scream.

"NAIEE!" he could hear his brother scream.

"Does it hurt, dear?" Araca whispered. Painful tears streamed down Naiee's face as the pain prevented him from doing anything else. He withdrew his screams, gritting his teeth, not daring to open his eyes. His breath stood still as his eyes jut open, straining to control themselves. The appendage drilled into him deeper, and he felt the same venom Naia suffered course into him. It stung him within, pounding into his head and creating a sickening feeling in him.

"Nng...!" His body adjusted to the excruciating pain, until his body felt too limp and weakened to move. It would've hurt to, anyway.

"As much as I'd love to kill you, I'm afraid I'm too late," Araca cooed. "It was nice to watch YOU writhe in suffering for a change, however. Shame you couldn't die from this instead." She let out a maniacal cackle as Naia made a rip in his cocoon.

"NO!" he screamed as he struggled.

Araca's appendage retracted from the younger brother's chest swiftly. Naiee unconsciously shuddered and coughed, some blood flying out along with it. He drew shaky breaths, unable to do anything else, as his head cocked to the side limply. He opened his eyes wide in fear, and they clouded in his vision.

"Are you watching, Naia dear? So which one hurts more? Being stabbed or watching your kin get stabbed?"

Among the pounding in his head, Naiee heard a distant tear of what sounded somewhat like fabric, shuffling and footsteps on the ground, followed by a gasp and growl in shock.

"LET HIM GO!"

Naiee barely heard it, however, as the ground opened up to swallow him.

"Too late, dear," a sing-song voice rang.

"NAIEE!"

The little brother, limp, closed his eyes, wanting to welcome death above anything then and there. He waited to feel whatever awaited in the gaping hole in the ground. Was it limbo? Was it oblivion? Was it hell?

...

...

...

...

...

He never hit the ground.

* * *

Me: OoooOOOooooh notice the implicit theme yet? It's not important. Whoops.


End file.
